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Ransomware Victim Agriculture and Food Production

CHOCOTOPIA

Ransomware attack by Donex · Disclosed March 8, 2024 · 🇨🇿 Czech Republic

chocotopia.cz

Date Disclosed
Mar 8, 2024
2024
Threat Group
Donex
5 total victims
Country
🇨🇿 Czech Republic
Industry
Agriculture and Food Production

ThreatAI Analysis

Compiled from this incident record and the threat intelligence profile for Donex. Figures and technique mappings are quoted from the source data, not inferred.

About the Donex group

DoNex is a ransomware strain that emerged in March 2024 as the latest rebrand of a lineage beginning with Muse (2022) → DarkRace (2023) → DoNex, targeting enterprises in the US and Europe using double-extortion; Avast released a free decryptor in July 2024 after discovering a cryptographic flaw. Donex has listed 5 victims since February 2024.

How Donex is documented to operate

Windows Management Instrumentation T1047 Execution

Adversaries may abuse Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) to execute malicious commands and payloads. WMI is designed for programmers and is the infrastructure for management data and operations on Windows systems. WMI is an administration feature that provides a uniform environment to access Windows system components. The WMI service enables both local and remote access, though the latter is facilitated by Remote Services such as Distributed Component Object Model and Windows Remote Management. Remote WMI over DCOM operates using port 135, whereas WMI over WinRM operates over port 5985 when using HTTP and 5986 for HTTPS.

Mitigations: Execution Prevention, Behavior Prevention on Endpoint, User Account Management, Privileged Account Management

MITRE ATT&CK reference →
Command and Scripting Interpreter T1059 Execution

Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries. These interfaces and languages provide ways of interacting with computer systems and are a common feature across many different platforms. Most systems come with some built-in command-line interface and scripting capabilities, for example, macOS and Linux distributions include some flavor of Unix Shell while Windows installations include the Windows Command Shell and PowerShell. There are also cross-platform interpreters such as Python, as well as those commonly associated with client applications such as JavaScript and Visual Basic.

Mitigations: Restrict Web-Based Content, Limit Software Installation, Execution Prevention, Code Signing, Behavior Prevention on Endpoint, Privileged Account Management

MITRE ATT&CK reference →
Native API T1106 Execution

Adversaries may interact with the native OS application programming interface (API) to execute behaviors. Native APIs provide a controlled means of calling low-level OS services within the kernel, such as those involving hardware/devices, memory, and processes. These native APIs are leveraged by the OS during system boot (when other system components are not yet initialized) as well as carrying out tasks and requests during routine operations. Adversaries may abuse these OS API functions as a means of executing behaviors.

Mitigations: Execution Prevention, Behavior Prevention on Endpoint

MITRE ATT&CK reference →
Shared Modules T1129 Execution

Adversaries may execute malicious payloads via loading shared modules. Shared modules are executable files that are loaded into processes to provide access to reusable code, such as specific custom functions or invoking OS API functions (i.e., Native API). Adversaries may use this functionality as a way to execute arbitrary payloads on a victim system. For example, adversaries can modularize functionality of their malware into shared objects that perform various functions such as managing C2 network communications or execution of specific actions on objective. The Linux & macOS module loader can load and execute shared objects from arbitrary local paths.

Mitigations: Execution Prevention

MITRE ATT&CK reference →

MITRE ATT&CK techniques attributed to Donex across its recorded activity, not a finding about how CHOCOTOPIA was reached.

Incident Analysis

CHOCOTOPIA was targeted by Donex ransomware, one of the most active ransomware groups in our database with 5 confirmed victims globally. The attack was disclosed on March 8, 2024, when CHOCOTOPIA appeared on the group's dark web leak site.

CHOCOTOPIA is based in Czech Republic , operating in the Agriculture and Food Production sector. Czech Republic ranks #33 globally for ransomware attacks, with 87 victims in our database.

Sector context: Organisations in this sector hold valuable data and operational systems that ransomware groups seek to exploit for financial gain through encryption and data exfiltration.

Donex typically employs a double extortion model: first exfiltrating sensitive data from the victim's systems, then deploying ransomware to encrypt files. Victims face two simultaneous threats — paying to restore access and paying to prevent publication of stolen data. The group's leak site publishes victim names and exfiltrated data as leverage.

Data source: This incident record is sourced from public ransomware group leak site disclosures aggregated via the ransomware.live API. Disclosure date reflects when the victim was published on the leak site, which may differ from the initial date of compromise. This platform does not publish or link to stolen data. Last data update: Sep 6, 2026 20:00 UTC.

Frequently Asked Questions

Was CHOCOTOPIA attacked by ransomware?

Yes. CHOCOTOPIA was listed as a victim of the Donex ransomware group on March 8, 2024. The organisation is based in Czech Republic and operates in the Agriculture and Food Production sector. The disclosure appeared on the group's dark web leak site.

Which ransomware group attacked CHOCOTOPIA?

CHOCOTOPIA was attacked by Donex ransomware. Donex is one of the most active ransomware groups, having claimed 5 victims globally. The group typically employs a double-extortion model: encrypting the victim's files and threatening to publish stolen data.

When did the CHOCOTOPIA ransomware attack occur?

The ransomware attack on CHOCOTOPIA was disclosed on March 8, 2024. This date reflects when the victim was published on the threat group's leak site, which may differ from the actual date of initial compromise.

What data was stolen in the CHOCOTOPIA ransomware attack?

The specific data stolen from CHOCOTOPIA has not been independently verified by this platform. Ransomware groups typically exfiltrate data before encrypting systems and use the threat of publication to pressure victims. As a Agriculture and Food Production organisation, CHOCOTOPIA likely held sensitive business data, client information, and operational records.

How can organisations protect against Donex attacks?

To defend against Donex and similar threat actors, organisations should: maintain regular offline backups tested for restoration; implement network segmentation to limit lateral movement; deploy multi-factor authentication on all remote access; use endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools; conduct regular phishing and security awareness training; and monitor threat intelligence feeds for indicators of compromise (IOCs) associated with active groups.